BRUTALISM Webzine (Hol)
This is a split release between the Czech Republic’s Heaving Earth and Australia’s Altars. This opens with Altars whose sound is very raw and very much like a demo recording. The drums sound like a tin can being beaten and the guitars that you can just make out. The songs themselves are cool and furious, a mix of the brutal bunch and some traditional US death metal. Apart from the furious blast beats every now and again, this is an admirable attempt, but nothing to really jump up and down about because you simply cannot hear the music over the overbearing drum sound, production values have certainly been missed on these two tracks although ‘Descent (Paramnesia, Part I)’ does fair better.
Heaving Earth are more in tune with both Immolation and Hate Eternal, both very fast and very brutal and if anyone heard their 2010 release ‘Diabolic prophecies’ then you will know what I mean. ‘I Am Nothing’ is furious barrage of ideas and riffs that sweep away any lesser guitarist in one foul swoop of the plectrum across the strings, this is hair raising, this is very cool. ‘Into the Depths of Abomination’ continues in the same vein by being close to an utter bombardment, it is simply a shame they have a spilt with a lesser quality band. In Summary, Heaving Earth receive a 4/5 and Altars are only awarded a 2/5.

DEAF SPARROW Webzine (Usa)
Back in the day we gave Altars 2008 self-titled demo 3 and a half sparrows and made a point to shed a light on their brutal skills and not so much on their claim of being an atmospheric death metal band. Now since, times have changed and we know now what they meant. Classifying Altars as a meat and potatoes death metal band, like we did back in the day, is like classifying Portal as a boring fucking death metal band. I call bullshit on myself fellas. In fact, there is a connection there, both bands do not only hail from the same side of the world, but both share some sonic aesthetics.
What we are talking about is the same curled up and twisty thing. Some may call it Lovecraftian and others opt for the word oppressive. Whatever term or adjective you use to describe what a band like Altars does is irrelevant. The effect of their music is always the same, disorientation and the uneasy feeling of having been possessed by one hundred demons. The exorcism has been performed by a dimwit, therefore you are scarred for life. As Altars’ half starts with “Husk”, it is obvious that there is nothing straightforward here. Yeah, it is all fast, it is all convoluted but is also fluent, dexterous, intelligent and well-laid out. There is also the complexity, the forward thinking structures, the intricate drum patterns and the guitars which pummel, recede and stay in the foreground most times and in the background at others, but they are always menacing. Man, how wrong was I!
Their second song is called “Descent” and is less rapid. It’s a solid an disturbing slab of sludge death metal, if you know what I mean. The guitars suppurate with crunch and the deep growls of Cale Schmidt hover omnipresent. The drumming is insane, in its own supernatural plane. First time listeners of metal who are introduced to the genre via Altars may be tricked into thinking that all death metal is this sophisticated. It is not, but Altars definitely think of it on its own terms.
Heaving Earth have a difficult job ahead of them. They need to at least leave up to the same enervating levels of extremity of Altars. A few riffs into their half it is obvious that Heaving Earth are definitely up to the task. Their style of death metal is if not as unorthodox at least as forward thinking. Can you say Morbid Angel? Sure, you can you son of a bitch. Their songs seem assembled by adding oblique riff after oblique riff, but somehow through it all, their songs come as much more straight forward. “I am Nothing” for instance, serves coiling riffs that are sectioned into passages. The drum work is puzzling and the vocals deeper than a black hole, but also a bit mundane. The skill level of the band is impressive, drummer Jirka Zajic is a monster, he drums hard and relentlessly, but also with gusto and detail.
I am always puzzled by the musicianship of extreme metal bands these days. But is one thing to have the technique and is a very different thing to make something good out of your chops. Heaving Earth have talent in spades and these two cuts show that in spades. Their cuts are exhilarating, good showing of their technical and creative efficiencies. Now, let’s just hope that both bands can make full-lengths that live up to the levels of intensity that are in display here.
Bobby Peru. 4/5

PANZERFAUST Blog (Pol)
I was very interested in getting this split tape, as it features one of my favourite Czech bands Heaving Earth, whose 2010’s album “Diabolic Prophecies” did some serious damage to my hearing and after listening session of it I had to answer some questions to the police, who wanted to know why all my neighbors are found dead (dead but dreaming!!!!!!). But OK, G from Nihilistic Holocaust came with helpful hand once more and provided a copy of “Engulfed”. This split features also band called Altars – I never heard of them before – with their Promo 2012 songs and then Heaving Earth presents completely new material from “Redemption Ablaze” promo.
So, starting with Altars… they’re Australian and play very brutal, almost grinding (not tempo wise though) at times, but also very old school death metal. The sound on their material is very harsh, filthy as hell and brutal as fuck… I really mean that. When I first started to listen to their first track – “Husk” – I was like: “Shit, have they recorded that in a dungeon or tomb or what???”. It did take me several minutes to adopt and get used to this raw production and I must be honest, I still feel like it lacks something. But the music is fine, it is extreme, brutal old school death metal. There’s quite a lot of complexity in their music, but all is devoured by that brutal and tight feeling and gloomy, deep vocals. I don’t feel crazy about Altars music, to be honest, but I like the slow parts of their music, from the other hand though this promotional material definitely lacks a better production (drums especially)… but definitely this band did manage to create an eerie and obscure, almost suffocating atmosphere, so fans of the likes of Incantation or Ignivomous, watch them! Currently Altars have been signed to Nuclear Winter and expect the release of the debut album “Paramnesia” (LP version will be released by Blood Harvest).
And now Heaving Earth… well, I already mentioned that I liked their debut CD, so I was really looking forward to hear “Redemption Ablaze” promo. And man, they did not fail. Great, tight, fast and technical death metal, in the vein of Morbid Angel, Monstrosity, Immolation, Malevolent Creation and few more, mainly American death legends. Both songs from “Redemption Ablaze” rip the guts out and I must say that I really like them both… the riffs, the vocals, drumming and the production - everything sounds great and right from the first second I felt very pleased with Heaving Earth’s music. This stuff is aggressive, is filled with pure energy and if Altars lacked that spark, which would ablaze the speakers, this Czech band did that in three seconds. And that ending part of “I am Nothing” just shreds totally, what an awesome piece of death metal!!!! Cannot wait then for the second album of Heaving Earth, which I hope those guys will do very soon.
Final rate: Altars (65/100) Heaving Earth (85/100) – overall it is 75/100

DEATH DOMAIN Webzine (Swe)
Just the idea that I in 2012 get sent a cassette makes me all warm and fuzzy (Or, well I actually didn’t get the music on cassette, but a CD+MC cover). The return of the analog is welcomed, since that’s what I grew up with. And with that said, over to the actual review….
Altars is a death metal outfit from Adelaide, South Australia. I quite like this filthy death metal that they got going on, it’s rather refreshing to hear something as organic as this in todays computer-age. I’m not really sure if I love the vocals though, that sadly are a bit too low in the mix most of the time. I love the drumwork though!
The first thing that strikes you with Heaving Earth, hailing from the Czech Republic, is the difference in production. While Altars had an organic sound, Heaving Earth has a more modern touch to them. Musically this reminds a bit of Morbid Angel with splashes of Hate Eternal. All in all this is good and well executed death metal, but offers little, if anything, new to the genre. Recommended tracks: Altars – Descent (Pramnesia, part I)

METAL REVOLUTION Webzine (Den)
Engulfed is a split release between an Australian and Czech band. Originally released on a cassette this material is old-school in graphics, production and playing.
First band to present their music is Altars. Those Aussies unleash some twisted, abstract and obscure death metal. To be more accurate, the band plays a blackened death metal. They are presented here with only two tracks, namely; ”Husk” and “Descent (Paramnesia, part I)” but it is just enough to get an idea what they are about.
Their sound is raw, brutal and uncompromising, sounding very much like a demo recording. It has its charm, but I feel like it’s getting annoying to listen to repeatedly. Both of the songs are furious with blast beats, intense riffing and insane vocals.
Heaving Earth suffers in Czech Republic and offers two new tracks; “I Am Nothing” and “Into The Depths Of Abomination”. Unlike their fellow colleges from Altars, this Czech band is more technical yet with the similar blast beats quality riffing and bombastic song-writing. Their style of playing is fast and brutal but with a technical edge to it.
It almost felt unnatural to put these two bands together on the same split, since they vary a lot in quality. Heaving Earth sounds more mature and secure than Altars and I can highly recommend them for a listen to any fan of decent death metal. 65/100_________________NIHILISTIC HOLOCAUST: Death metal webzine/ Distro/ DIY Label:
http://site.voila.fr/NIHILISTIC

Last edited by gabalgabow on Wed Mar 25, 2015 2:37 am; edited 2 times in total

TRANSCENDING OBSCURITY Webzine (India):
Altars joins forces with Heaving Earth to unleash its subterranean brand of Death Metal influenced by Morbid Angel. In comparison with its self-titled demo, the music is less influenced by Mithras and more by Immolation which is both good and bad. I miss the otherworldly solos reminiscent of Mithras while at the same time the sheer class of Immolation can’t be denied. That said, Altars isn’t a clone band. It’s using the influences to create an ugly, twisted form of music that is bound to knock out a few. Unfortunately the dissonance isn’t given its due because of the crude production. With that sorted, I’m sure the band will impress even the skeptics. The drumming is Alex Hernandez-esque and while that’s a huge compliment, the sound could be much better. From what my elephantine-memory can recall, the music on this tape is far more menacing and focused than on Altars’ debut. That’s always a good sign.
From Czech Republic, you have the underrated dark Death Metal monster Heaving Earth, still awaiting its due. The problem is that people these days don’t appreciate Death Metal in its purest form – they either want mind-boggling technicality and speed, or just speaker-bursting brutality. In comparison with the Australian Altars, Heaving Earth is more straightforward. Again, the primary influences happen to be Morbid Angel and Immolation, and for that the credit must go to Nihilistic Holocaust for this excellent matchmaking. The production again is raw but incredibly heavy, which puts everything in its place. The huge roars of the vocalist make the music sound a lot more heavier, even more so than Immolation itself. The dissonance comes out on this side rather well, which is reminiscent of Immolation in its prime circa the mid-90s.
These days it’s a delight to watch two pure Death Metal bands do it the right way. Altars is more original in that sense but is bogged down by rough sound while Heaving Earth, being more unabashedly Immolation-influenced, is going for the kill.